by John Naese
Today’s world is connected, or so they say. The younger you are, the more connected you are. Everyone’s got a cell phone; most of the people I know have smart phones, which means they are connected to the internet almost all the time.
Facebook, Twitter, texting, instant messaging, forum posts, email – hardly anyone even talks on their phone anymore. It’s just pixels on a screen, with no tone of voice, no inflection, no facial gestures or body language.
No need to go to that class reunion to catch up with everyone – they already posted their children’s pictures on Facebook. No need to catch up on the careers of old friends or acquaintances – just check their LinkedIn profile. You don’t have to wait to buy a fundraiser ticket for your favorite church, school program, or charity – we’re crowdfunding that. Just click here to “donate now”.
Lost in this is the power of face to face meeting. Face to face used to be the norm. Used to be that you didn’t stay home and watch the highlights from 18 local high school football games; you went to one. While you were there, you had conversations with other fans, parents, the ambulance crew (probably part of the volunteer fire department) standing by in case of injury. You said hello to the boosters and the students working the concession stand. You didn’t think of it that way then, but you were networking. It was a social network without the electronic component.
Don’t misunderstand – I’m not bashing technology. I’m writing this on one computer and emailing it to myself at another account on another computer. I have (and occasionally use) a smart phone. I text. I don’t do Facebook, but my spouse does (she often informs me of happenings in my extended family days or weeks before I find out about them from my extended family). I don’t tweet, but I take the opportunity to ridicule those who tweet stupid stuff.
But face to face interactions are extremely valuable. A simple misunderstanding that would erupt into a “flame war” online can be diffused just by cracking a smile or similar body language – but only if witnessed face to face. Lots of people aren’t persuaded by the smiley face 🙂
At Guns Save Life, we believe in the power of face to face. Meetings are held in four different cities each month, to give gun owners an opportunity not only to hear interesting speakers, but to interact with each other – face to face. It’s no mistake that the “social hour” lasts as long as or longer than the meeting. We encourage each other, discover each other, make new friends, and build bonds of trust that anonymous forum posts just can’t match.
Our meetings are also FUN. Even when discussing serious issues of politics, we can have fun and a laugh. It’s easy to work up an online froth of anger, but it’s not very satisfying, and ultimately you probably don’t persuade anyone with snarky comments of 140 characters or less. But come to a GSL meeting, and you’ll feel good when you are leaving – even if you found out about some stupid scheme to take away your liberty, and you found out you’re going to have to work hard to keep your rights.
Many hands make light work, and you’ll feel better and be encouraged to do even more after you see a roomful of people laughing at the same jokes, applauding the same speakers, and encouraging each other. Which is more real: a real room with 200 or more like-minded patriots in it, or a “chat room” with 200 online users, some of which are most certainly trolls and none of which you know personally?
Certainly all are welcome to join Guns Save Life, and many do who never make it to a meeting, for whatever reason. Some live in distant locales; some work evenings; some have mobility issues; some have church or other important business on meeting nights. Also, not everyone can make 12 meetings a year. But I encourage you, if you can, to come to a meeting or three. With four cities having monthly meetings, and the prospect of more in the future, why not come and participate in something that has so many tangible and intangible benefits? It will be good for you, good for GSL, and good for our country. See you on the first Tuesday (Pontiac), first Thursday (Peoria and Effingham) or the second Tuesday (Champaign)!
Editor’s note: The Peoria and Effingham meetings for January have been cancelled, given that they fall on New Year’s Day. They’ll be back in February, of course!
We’ve got some great speakers lined up for the January meetings in Champaign and Pontiac though.
In January, at the Pontiac meeting (Tuesday, January 6th) we’ll be featuring Todd Vandermyde who will give us a slide show presentation of his recent African hunting trip and a legislative update of what to expect in the coming session under our new governor! In Champaign, on Tuesday, January 13th, we’ll have Illinois Deputy General Counsel Jeffrey Shuck – a man who overcame adversity in the form of a car accident in high school to go on to become very successful and indeed inspirational in his daily life. He’s going to talk about how those with disabilities can overcome them to be able to use a firearm safely and effectively for self-defense and a whole lot more.
For February, it gets even better:
In February in Champaign, Springfield Armory reps will be joining us with a lineup of Springfield products and information about America’s oldest firearms company – a company whose history pre-dates our nation’s founding. Also in February, in Peoria, we’ll be featuring the Deputy Chief of the IDNR Police Joe Morelock who will talk about some of the great opportunities in the outdoors in Illinois along with some mindset issues involved with carrying a gun as a good guy (applying to both cops and concealed carry holders) and using it to defend innocent life. You’re not going to want to miss any of these meetings!